Canadian skylines of the past

[kool maudit]

I got caught on this one for a while, and initially thought I was looking from behind the Aldred with the old Street Railways building (now the execrable Palais) at centre right.

But no! The centre-right building is on Paper Hill/St-Alexandre, and the foreground-centre building with the mosaic is now part of the Caisse complex. Meaning that the smaller white deco building was once on the northwest corner of Square Victoria, but got eaten up by the old Banque Nationale HQ...? Or was it lost to that weird field where they have been proposing mediocrities for 25 years?

Pauvre ti bête. The '80s were hard on Montreal.

[Rico Rommheim]

That 8 storey deco building, which I believe was the headquarters of Nortel or one of its predecessors was indeed at the corner of Beaver Hall and Viger, where the National bank HQ now stands.

It's hard to find pictures of that building though.

[J.OT13]

Montreal, in the 90s?


https://twitter.com/VIA_Rail/status/1326918039401615362

[Rico Rommheim]

Here's one found while scrounging around for that elusive 8 storey deco. McGill Street and Square Victoria as seen from Beaumont and Beaver Hall streets, 1970


https://i.pinimg.com/736x/37/8d/40/3...f0582391b9.jpg


https://i.pinimg.com/564x/da/04/fb/d...56b565cb1b.jpg

1925
St-Jacques (formerly St-James) and McGill.



https://i.pinimg.com/564x/ab/aa/df/a...60393f04d7.jpg

PVM inauguration 1962

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/40/30/bb/4...524bc17114.jpg

Before and after. This shot shows just how spread out the downtown skyline used to be, and actually, how spread out it continues to be.
Toronto always had a very dense ad clustered skyline. Unlike Montreal, whose original downtown (old montreal) was being cannibalized by the upstart uptown downtown around Dominion Square. Oddly enough, the downtown skyline is now making a bommerang move back to the lower town around Victoria square.

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/43/64/8c/4...7f59aa1ba6.jpg

[Andy6]

Don't think they would have been handing out maple leaf flags at the PVM inauguration in 1962. That's John Ferguson and Team Canada '72 members, it looks like. Maybe before the game in Montreal.

[Rico Rommheim]

Thanks for the correction. I thought something was odd with that photo. Didn't seem like 1962.

[J.OT13]

Ottawa, 1920.


https://twitter.com/PaulHoward_IMIT/...91953316577280

[Rico Rommheim]

Ottawa's core was small but dense. I kind of wish they had never built those 80m boxes starting in the 60's and kept a 5-10 storey height limit in the downtown while allowing those chateau-esque government buildings and the Laurier to stand out.

I used to really be impressed with Ottawa's downtown canyons as a kid. But my last two visits to Ottawa changed that perspective. I find downtown Ottawa unbelievably bland and cold, while the sector east of parliament is vibrant and very intersting.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by Andy6

Don't think they would have been handing out maple leaf flags at the PVM inauguration in 1962. That's John Ferguson and Team Canada '72 members, it looks like. Maybe before the game in Montreal.

Agreed. Off the top of my head, the people in the photo are Bobby Orr, Brad Park, Ron Ellis, Bill White (I think) and John Ferguson. Those haircuts look like 1972, not 1962.

The 1950s lasted until about 1967. The 1970s started in 1968.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by Rico Rommheim

Ottawa's core was small but dense. I kind of wish they had never built those 80m boxes starting in the 60's and kept a 5-10 storey height limit in the downtown while allowing those chateau-esque government buildings and the Laurier to stand out.

I used to really be impressed with Ottawa's downtown canyons as a kid. But my last two visits to Ottawa changed that perspective. I find downtown Ottawa unbelievably bland and cold, while the sector east of parliament is vibrant and very intersting.

I agree, the interior CBD is pretty terrible all around. The Elgin side is quite nice, with parkland and the NAC on one side, and a good variety of architecture from the last 150 years on the other. Sparks has potential, but it's still lagging. Queen has improved with the Confederation Line related re-build.

Albert and Slater, the former Central Transitway, should be re-built over the next few years. Space taken by bus lanes will be given to pedestrians and cyclists.

[wave46]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

I agree, the interior CBD is pretty terrible all around. The Elgin side is quite nice, with parkland and the NAC on one side, and a good variety of architecture from the last 150 years on the other. Sparks has potential, but it's still lagging. Queen has improved with the Confederation Line related re-build.

Albert and Slater, the former Central Transitway, should be re-built over the next few years. Space taken by bus lanes will be given to pedestrians and cyclists.

Centretown is a dead zone after hours. Wandering much past Elgin westwards is like entering no-man's land after 5 p.m. You'd think Bank St. would be busier and more vibrant, but not really.

[craner]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Agreed. Off the top of my head, the people in the photo are Bobby Orr, Brad Park, Ron Ellis, Bill White (I think) and John Ferguson. Those haircuts look like 1972, not 1962.

The 1950s lasted until about 1967. The 1970s started in 1968.

I think you can see “1972” on the flag in Ferguson’s hand.

[Rico Rommheim]

The Laurentian hotel was a streamline moderne 1000 room hotel at the corner of Peel and Dorchester. Here it is being built in 1948. We didn't see many buildings being built around that time. I don't think it was a masterpiece, it actually even looked quite cheap. But I'd still like to see it here again. It was demolished in 1977.


https://archivesdemontreal.ica-atom....M94-Z181-3.jpg


https://img.banq.qc.ca/iiif/2/sQXwOd.../0/default.jpg








https://i.pinimg.com/736x/de/7b/6b/d...ea7fa9ceb7.jpg


https://farm1.staticflickr.com/148/3...96a79412_b.jpg

Next to the CIBC tower in the 60's

https://live.staticflickr.com/7244/7...5c7ba4d8_b.jpg


https://i0.wp.com/www.taylornoakes.c...SGL.jpg?w=1620

A early 1950's shot of the skyline with the hotel on the right

[esquire]

Montreal in the 60s looks completely magical. What an era.

[J.OT13]

The Laurentian is very reminiscent of a hospital. Why was it demolished after only 29 years?

[MolsonExport]

wrong part of town, once long-haul passenger rail traffic started to slip. Killed off the Windsor and Queen's hotels as well.

[Chadillaccc]

Originally Posted by Rico Rommheim

A early 1950's shot of the skyline with the hotel on the right

Absolutely stunning.

[esquire]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

wrong part of town, once long-haul passenger rail traffic started to slip. Killed off the Windsor and Queen's hotels as well.

That's a bit like the fate of the Royal Alexandra Hotel in Winnipeg. Once CPR passenger traffic plummeted after WWII the hotel's fate was sealed. Closed down for good in 1967 and demolished in 1971.

[BillM]

Originally Posted by Rico Rommheim

The Laurentian hotel was a streamline moderne 1000 room hotel at the corner of Peel and Dorchester. Here it is being built in 1948. We didn't see many buildings being built around that time. I don't think it was a masterpiece, it actually even looked quite cheap. But I'd still like to see it here again. It was demolished in 1977.

That corner was much more animated with the Laurentian Hotel. Contrasting that was the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce with its plaza in front, observation deck on the 45th floor and soaring antenna.

[SignalHillHiker]

Via FB, opening of a working class neighbourhood’s first playground:



And later:



Keeping in mind that back then, this was the extent of public services in the poorer parts of town (just a few houses down from the above pics, same street even):